Embassy of the State of Palestine

Press Statement

The Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) condemns the continuous Israeli occupation’s ferocious aggression on the Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip. ICHR calls for the international community to take an immediate action to end Israeli war crimes and collective punishments in the Gaza Strip and provide international protection for Palestinian civilians. ICHR also calls on the President of the State of Palestine to sign and ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and exert all necessary pressure to ensure the opening of the Rafah borders with Egypt for provision of medical and humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

ICHR reiterates its position that the Israeli military operation “Protective Edge” in the Gaza Strip seriously violates international human rights and humanitarian law, especially the Forth Geneva Conventions Relative to Protection of Civilian in conflict and under occupation. Over the past six days, the Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip indiscriminately and disproportionately targeted Palestinian civilians resulting in the death of more than 165 civilians and the injuring of over 1129 civilians including children, women and the elderly. Furthermore, hundreds of mosques, public institutions, homes and civilian properties were targeted and completely destroyed.

According to International Humanitarian Law more notably Article (1) of the Four Geneva Conventions, targeting and killing of civilians is strongly prohibited and is considered a war crime. The distinction shall be made between civilian and military objects and under no circumstances civilians must be targeted. The Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip constitute war crimes and are flagrant violations of International Humanitarian Law more notably Article (147) of the Fourth Geneva Convention. This requires the immediate implementation of international criminal accountability and international justice by persecuting the Israeli war criminals.
Accordingly, ICHR calls on:
• The High Contracting Parties of the Four Geneva Conventions to abide with their moral and legal obligations under common Article (1) and Article (146) of the Four Geneva Conventions which establishes the responsibility on High Contracting Parties to pursue and prosecute those who practice grave-breaches of the Convention. ICHR hence calls on the High Contracting Parties to immediately convene to bring an end to this violence attack against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, and ensure that Israel as an occupying authority immediately refrains from targeting civilians and their properties.

• The Secretary General of the United Nations to take a serious action to protect the Palestinian civilians in Gaza Strip, and to immediately visit the Gaza Strip to evaluate the humanitarian crisis there and ensure that UNRWA and UN Agencies are providing necessary medical and humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in there. ICHR also calls upon the UN to strengthen its condemnation to the Israeli violations and military operations and send an independent fact-finding mission to the Gaza Strip in order to investigate war crimes committed against Palestinians. The United Nations Security Council is mandated to ensure peace and security and therefore should immediately call on Israel to cease its military aggression against vulnerable Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip.

• The President of the State of Palestine to sign and ratify the Rome Statue of the International Criminal Court in order to pursue and prosecute Israeli government officials who have committed and/or ordered the commission of war crimes against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip. Such a step will contribute to efforts towards bringing an end to the prevailing culture of impunity; thereby guaranteeing justice and equality to Palestinian victims of grave breaches and serious violations of human rights.
• ICHR also calls upon the Palestinian President to use all powers to which he is entitled to immediately intervene with the international community and the Security Council to bring an end to this ferocious, disproportionate and indiscriminate military attack on Palestinian civilians and do all what he can to prevent the planned Israeli land operations on the Gaza Strip. ICHR also calls on the President to utilize his diplomatic relations and contacts with the Egyptian Government to ensure the opening of the Rafah borders with Gaza for the passage of medical and humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and for the transfer of those who were injured for medication in Egyptian hospitals.

-Ends-